WHO WAS SIR WALTER RALEIGH? WHAT WAS HIS CONNECTION TO ELIZABETH I? WHAT IS HIS CONNECTION TO THE LEGEND OF EL DORADO? WHAT IS HIS LEGACY?
Answer prepared by: Ben S.
Sir Walter Raleigh gained immense power and influence throughout his lifetime. He arguably profited more than any other man during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. He gained not only her affection but also her trust. Sir Walter Raleigh served as captain of the Queen’s Guard. He was also given the ability to arrange a number of voyages to the New World. Some of the discoveries made on these trips played an important role in later exploration and settlements, even though they were not all successful. Raleigh lived during the times of four monarchs of England, and he also experienced multiple conflicts over the changes in state religion. Some of these changed his life and also led him to fight in a war. Sir Walter Raleigh’s experiences, starting with those of his childhood, definitely led brought him to his eventual prestige.
Walter Raleigh’s birth date is one of the many unknown facts regarding his childhood. He was most likely born in 1554 at a family home in the town of Devon, England. His father was also named Walter, and the family had lived in the area for a while, as Earle Rice Jr. explains in The Life and Times of Sir Walter Raleigh, when he says that the “old and respected Raleigh family had lived in England’s West Country for two centuries. Although the family name and fortune had declined a little over the years, Walter senior still managed to support his family comfortably” (13). When Raleigh was born, the queen of England was named Mary I, or “Bloody Mary,” who restored the Catholic faith as the state religion of England in place of the previous Protestant Church (Rice 14). This caused many problems for the Raleigh family because they decided to remain of the Protestant faith, along with a number of other English citizens. When Raleigh was about 15, he joined a relative to go fight with the French Protestants in France’s Third War of Religion, and he fought most memorably in the battles of Jarnac, Moncontour, and Languedoc. When he returned from the fighting in France, he was accepted into Oriel College, Oxford, which was around 1572. Impatient, he left without a degree after three years to debate current affairs and study law at the Middle Temple in London. It was during this time that he became intrigued by the possibility of proving the existence of a North-West passage to China, an idea that had been proposed to him by his brother, and he also heard for the first time about a vision for and empire in the Americas. Shortly after this, Elizabeth I succeeded Mary I to the throne and converted England back to the Protestant Church. As Walter looked to gain recognition from the queen, he accompanied his brother on an expedition to the New World, which came back as a failure. Annoyed, the government banned both Raleigh and his brother from ever sailing again, a setback to Sir Walter’s endeavors to be well recognized at court.
In time, Raleigh would sail again after he built up respect. When he returned home from the voyage, he took a position as a captain in the British army and was sent to end a revolt in Ireland. There, Raleigh became recognized for his brave conduct over and over again. After animosity and tensions grew between Raleigh and his deputy, Raleigh was finally allowed to return home in 1581. Upon his arrival in England, his relations with the queen soared as he quickly became one of her favorites in court. She “showered Walter with favors and lavish gifts, including a lease to Durham House, one of London’s fanciest homes” and “awarded him 42,000 acres of land in Ireland,” where he introduced the potato to Ireland (Rice 22). Most importantly, Elizabeth I supplied Raleigh with many trade licenses and monopolies. After losing his brother at sea, Raleigh renewed his interest in establishing English colonies in the Americas; he sent voyages to the land of Virginia, which he named for the queen. He attempted to explore this land for gold and silver, and attempted to colonize the land in 1585. After one year, the first group of settlers returned to England, but when he sent a second group, they disappeared mysteriously. For a time after the settlers vanished, Raleigh turned his attention away from the New World and back to affairs in England, but the Americas were bound to catch his interest again.
After secretly marrying in 1591, and being banned from court and losing his position as captain of the Queen’s Guard because of it, Raleigh heard of a fabled city of gold in South America. Fantastic stories told how the city possessed such wealth that the king was able to be coated in gold every morning, wash it off at night, and get a brand new coat the next day. A few said that he had been covered in gold so many times that he became permanently gilded (Rice 29). The city was called El Dorado, or “The Golden” in Spanish (Rice 29). As Raleigh began to regret the loss of his place at court, he composed a plan to find El Dorado and personally claim it for Elizabeth I, which would hopefully return her favor in him and award him his place in court. In 1595, he left for South America with four ships and about 300 sailors and adventurers. Once he arrived, he destroyed the harbor guard at Port of Spain and burned down the town of St. Joseph. He captured the Spanish governor of the island and sailed up the Orinoco for about a month and befriended an Indian chief, but the expedition did not find evidence of the City of Gold. After the queen’s death in 1603, Raleigh lost nearly all of his wealth and positions, and was imprisoned for years after being accused of playing a part in a plot to assassinate the new king, James I. In 1616, Raleigh was finally released to lead another expedition down to South America, and he promised the king gold. Raleigh was prohibited from interfering with Spanish territory under the penalty of death. When he reached the Orinoco, he had to stay behind because of a fever. After he heard of the loss of his son to the Spanish and the failure to find gold, Raleigh returned home, and the king charged him with treason and enacted his death sentence.
As Sir Walter Raleigh was lead to the executioner, he asked to see the blade. According to Earle Rice Jr., he said that it was “a sharp medicine, but a physician for all diseases” (41). Raleigh never succeeded in either of his dreams of conquering El Dorado or establishing a colony in the Americas, although he had been granted multiple attempts at both. At the peak of his wealth, Sir Walter Raleigh did accomplish the feat of becoming the queen’s favorite at court, and he received numerous gifts and awards from her. He saw the public’s respect for him rise and fall after his role in the defeat of the Spanish armada and his marriage to “Bess” (Rice 26). Although his real power ended at the hands of James I who took away his former wealth and status awarded by Elizabeth I, his legacy and standards of conduct and bravery continued on. He is still given credit for many of the military accomplishments of England at the time, and knowledge from his explorations has played a role in generations after him. Although his status hit the bottom at the end of his life, he is honored today for his successes and achievements for England and for the world. Works Cited
"Elizabeth I." WORLD BOOK E 6. 1st ed. 1 vol. Chicago,IL: a Scott
Fetzer company, 2008. Print.
Answer prepared by: Ben S.
Sir Walter Raleigh gained immense power and influence throughout his lifetime. He arguably profited more than any other man during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. He gained not only her affection but also her trust. Sir Walter Raleigh served as captain of the Queen’s Guard. He was also given the ability to arrange a number of voyages to the New World. Some of the discoveries made on these trips played an important role in later exploration and settlements, even though they were not all successful. Raleigh lived during the times of four monarchs of England, and he also experienced multiple conflicts over the changes in state religion. Some of these changed his life and also led him to fight in a war. Sir Walter Raleigh’s experiences, starting with those of his childhood, definitely led brought him to his eventual prestige.
Walter Raleigh’s birth date is one of the many unknown facts regarding his childhood. He was most likely born in 1554 at a family home in the town of Devon, England. His father was also named Walter, and the family had lived in the area for a while, as Earle Rice Jr. explains in The Life and Times of Sir Walter Raleigh, when he says that the “old and respected Raleigh family had lived in England’s West Country for two centuries. Although the family name and fortune had declined a little over the years, Walter senior still managed to support his family comfortably” (13). When Raleigh was born, the queen of England was named Mary I, or “Bloody Mary,” who restored the Catholic faith as the state religion of England in place of the previous Protestant Church (Rice 14). This caused many problems for the Raleigh family because they decided to remain of the Protestant faith, along with a number of other English citizens. When Raleigh was about 15, he joined a relative to go fight with the French Protestants in France’s Third War of Religion, and he fought most memorably in the battles of Jarnac, Moncontour, and Languedoc. When he returned from the fighting in France, he was accepted into Oriel College, Oxford, which was around 1572. Impatient, he left without a degree after three years to debate current affairs and study law at the Middle Temple in London. It was during this time that he became intrigued by the possibility of proving the existence of a North-West passage to China, an idea that had been proposed to him by his brother, and he also heard for the first time about a vision for and empire in the Americas. Shortly after this, Elizabeth I succeeded Mary I to the throne and converted England back to the Protestant Church. As Walter looked to gain recognition from the queen, he accompanied his brother on an expedition to the New World, which came back as a failure. Annoyed, the government banned both Raleigh and his brother from ever sailing again, a setback to Sir Walter’s endeavors to be well recognized at court.
In time, Raleigh would sail again after he built up respect. When he returned home from the voyage, he took a position as a captain in the British army and was sent to end a revolt in Ireland. There, Raleigh became recognized for his brave conduct over and over again. After animosity and tensions grew between Raleigh and his deputy, Raleigh was finally allowed to return home in 1581. Upon his arrival in England, his relations with the queen soared as he quickly became one of her favorites in court. She “showered Walter with favors and lavish gifts, including a lease to Durham House, one of London’s fanciest homes” and “awarded him 42,000 acres of land in Ireland,” where he introduced the potato to Ireland (Rice 22). Most importantly, Elizabeth I supplied Raleigh with many trade licenses and monopolies. After losing his brother at sea, Raleigh renewed his interest in establishing English colonies in the Americas; he sent voyages to the land of Virginia, which he named for the queen. He attempted to explore this land for gold and silver, and attempted to colonize the land in 1585. After one year, the first group of settlers returned to England, but when he sent a second group, they disappeared mysteriously. For a time after the settlers vanished, Raleigh turned his attention away from the New World and back to affairs in England, but the Americas were bound to catch his interest again.
After secretly marrying in 1591, and being banned from court and losing his position as captain of the Queen’s Guard because of it, Raleigh heard of a fabled city of gold in South America. Fantastic stories told how the city possessed such wealth that the king was able to be coated in gold every morning, wash it off at night, and get a brand new coat the next day. A few said that he had been covered in gold so many times that he became permanently gilded (Rice 29). The city was called El Dorado, or “The Golden” in Spanish (Rice 29). As Raleigh began to regret the loss of his place at court, he composed a plan to find El Dorado and personally claim it for Elizabeth I, which would hopefully return her favor in him and award him his place in court. In 1595, he left for South America with four ships and about 300 sailors and adventurers. Once he arrived, he destroyed the harbor guard at Port of Spain and burned down the town of St. Joseph. He captured the Spanish governor of the island and sailed up the Orinoco for about a month and befriended an Indian chief, but the expedition did not find evidence of the City of Gold. After the queen’s death in 1603, Raleigh lost nearly all of his wealth and positions, and was imprisoned for years after being accused of playing a part in a plot to assassinate the new king, James I. In 1616, Raleigh was finally released to lead another expedition down to South America, and he promised the king gold. Raleigh was prohibited from interfering with Spanish territory under the penalty of death. When he reached the Orinoco, he had to stay behind because of a fever. After he heard of the loss of his son to the Spanish and the failure to find gold, Raleigh returned home, and the king charged him with treason and enacted his death sentence.
As Sir Walter Raleigh was lead to the executioner, he asked to see the blade. According to Earle Rice Jr., he said that it was “a sharp medicine, but a physician for all diseases” (41). Raleigh never succeeded in either of his dreams of conquering El Dorado or establishing a colony in the Americas, although he had been granted multiple attempts at both. At the peak of his wealth, Sir Walter Raleigh did accomplish the feat of becoming the queen’s favorite at court, and he received numerous gifts and awards from her. He saw the public’s respect for him rise and fall after his role in the defeat of the Spanish armada and his marriage to “Bess” (Rice 26). Although his real power ended at the hands of James I who took away his former wealth and status awarded by Elizabeth I, his legacy and standards of conduct and bravery continued on. He is still given credit for many of the military accomplishments of England at the time, and knowledge from his explorations has played a role in generations after him. Although his status hit the bottom at the end of his life, he is honored today for his successes and achievements for England and for the world.
Works Cited
"Elizabeth I." WORLD BOOK E 6. 1st ed. 1 vol. Chicago,IL: a Scott
Fetzer company, 2008. Print.
"EL DORADO." Encyclopedia Americana. 1st ed. 1 vol. Danbury,CO:
Scholastic Library Publishing, Inc., 2005. Print.
"File:Sir Walter Raleigh BAH-p22.png." File:Sir Walter Raleigh BAH-p22.png. Web. 8 Apr 2010. <http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http:upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0f/Sir_Walter_Raleigh_BAH-p22.png&imgrefurl=http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sir_Walter_Raleigh_BAH-p22.png&usg=__f71ng_yQjKCKJ-RTgZ3vSwh4YG8=&h=2353&w=2142&sz=248&hl=en&start=2&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=stJ8kvx26tnZ7M:&tbnh=150&tbnw=137&prev=/images%3Fq%3DSir%2Bwalter%2Braleigh%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dactive%26client%3Dsafari%26sa%3DN%26rls%3Den%26tbs%3Disch:1>.
Hamsworth, Andy. Elizabethan England a Study in Depth. 1st ed. 1 vol.
Hachette,UK: John Murray Publishers Ltd, 1999. 116-117. Print.
"RALEIGH, Sir Walter." Encyclopedia Americana. 1st ed. 1vol.
Danbury,CO: Scholastic Library Publishing, Inc., 2005. Print.
Rice Jr., Earle. The Life and Times of Sir Walter Raleigh. 1st ed. 1 vol.
Hockessin,DE: Mitchell Lane Publishers, 2007. 6-45. Print.
Thomas, Jane Resh. Behind the Mask the Life of Queen Elizabeth//. 1st
ed. 1 vol. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1998. 1-180. Print.
Here are a few websites that have some great information relating to Sir Walter Raleigh.
Here is a video with a poem that was written by Walter Raleigh while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London before his execution.